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    Kababayan

    3.8 (89 reviews)
    Closed 9:00 am - 6:00 pm

    Kababayan Photos

    Business Info

    KABABAYAN ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Divey
    Moderate noise
    Good for kids

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    Recommended Reviews - Kababayan

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    Dinuguan and Sisig
    Jolens V.

    The food is ok. Service is good . The location is easy to find. The place needs more light inside.,

    The bomb.com of filipino foods
    Tom S.

    The is always great, especially me being half filipino. Me and a friend went here today 5-5-2025,for cinco de mayo. We decided instead of Mexican food, let's have filipino food and our choice was the best choice.

    a kitchen with a television and a refrigerator
    Ron G.

    tl;dr solid cheap food + variety for lunch Kababayan Cafe, located in the heart of the Mission District, is a place that could easily be overlooked due to its inconspicuous nature. It's a fundamental hole in the wall joint, run by just a solitary person - a potential setback for those in a hurry, but ensuring a meticulous execution of each dish. The restaurant, despite its humble appearance, offers generous servings of food without putting a significant dent in your pocket. My hearty plate that was basically just meat was just $12. Depending on the day of your visit, the menu varies. On my stop in, the pancit noodles had good texture but fell a bit short on flavor. The sisig was flavorful but suffered slightly from the chewiness of the pork. While the individual dining atmosphere might turn off some, those who appreciate solitude in their culinary adventures will find it to their liking. The service is mostly run by 1 person so you go up to the counter and order nand there's not much else - so good if you're going in-n-out for lunch. Kababayan Cafe lacks the Instagrammable vibe we often seek out, and it may be a bit better on price/quality point in Daly City in terms of quality, but it's certainly not a venue to write off and is very solid for a Mission Lunch spot and offers a hard-to-find variety of Filipino food in SF (compared to Inion city/Daly city).

    Johnny V.

    one of my favorite go-to small filipino shops in sf! - food is quick, served fast food style (like chipotle), and the prices are even better (huge plus) unfortunately, they were short on balut when we came by, but we still ended up being satisfied with our meal. - the worker there was super helpful with recommendations and was quite friendly! - ambiance wasn't amazing, they do have spots to sit down but it's more of a 'grab & go' type of spot. parking situation was a bit difficult as it's in a busy area as well. all-in-all though, very satisfied with what they offer here at Kababayan. i'll be back the next time i'm in SF. :)

    Ginger chicken soup w/ what tasted like kugua (chinese pronunciation, bitter squash) and spinach
    Daniel B.

    Great neighborhood lunch spot. The chicken soup was on hitters. It was a light homemade soup without noticeable amounts of MSG, just like my wife cooks. Perfect ratio of ginger and seasoning to broth and soft, lovely chicken flavor. Served with bone in and a bitter squash that really adds to the flavor of the soup. I've been looking for a clear broth soup like this for 6 years since we moved to SF. Finally! The other dishes I got were ok, too. Nothing special, but juicy and good. The pancit noodles had a great texture but lacked in flavor. I also prefer thinner noodles. The sisig was juicy and flavorful, but the pork was a bit chewy. Both dishes were ok, and I'd have them on the side with the soup again. I would recommend this place if you're in the area, or if you're like me and have been craving a light, clear broth soup but are too lazy to cook it yourself. Of course, it seems like this place kind of just makes whatever dishes they feel like on any given day (e.g., today no lumpia), so not guarantee it will be there if you make the trek across town. In any case, this is a great little spot with no fuss. One of the main reasons this place does not get 5 stars is because $13 for a 2-item box and small soup seems pretty steep. I have leftovers for tomorrow. While affordable, this place is not truly cheap. And that's really kind of what it would need to make up for the otherwise unappealing restaurant vibe, i.e., no one who ordered in front of me stayed to eat inside. Not a perfect place, but I'll definitely be back. Happy eating!

    My chicken adobo pieces were mostly bones.
    Mz J.

    The pancit is good and the longanisa ($1.75 each) as well as the sisig is very good. My chicken adobo pieces were mostly bones. Skip the dinuguan as it had too much vinegar. I haven't tried to balut yet. Not sure if I will be back.

    Mmmm
    Gil M.

    Once you accept that this place is one of those old school hole in the walls that doesn't focus on aesthetics, you can appreciate the quality of the food. I am very hard on Filipino restaurants knowing how to cook dishes to my liking. But this place has the taste that I love! I have ordered their Filipino breakfasts, lumpia, bistek, sinigang, and chicken curry. All these so far has satisfied more then to my expectations. The service is good. There are a couple Filipino restaurants near by, but for this area, Kababayan is the one! Catch up on Filipino pop culture or news from The Filipino Channel while eating your meal. TFC is on all day! So if you ever find yourself in the Mission district of San Francisco craving Filipino food, I recommend coming here. Happy Yelping and stay hungry adventurous!

    Filipino Home Cooking
    Rudy H.

    stumble upon a Filipino hole in the wall restaurant while I was walking on the Mission. I ordered ala carte of two items (Pork Menudo & Dinuguan) with a dessert (Halo-Halo). this is a place to get some Filipino food if you don't want to go to the Tenderloin or Daly City. not bad, but the menu is a bit confusing.

    Skiidoz H.

    Wasn't that friendly !! Couldn't explain what was inside of the Sausage but that it was Pork.. I really feel customers should be able to sample ideas to ensure the taste is correct when the viewing of the food doesn't look that pleasant !! Especially when the Food is sitting out .. After Purchasing & Tasting the Food : It was very dry (sausages) and tasted Old!! I asked for some juice from the sausages tray on my rice I received None .

    Pork with coconut + shrimp base and rice for $5.99 and karioka for $2... With Filipino drama in the background
    Sally L.

    Hole in the wall Filipino restaurant in the Mexican-dominant Mission district. Given my obsession with Filipino food and not wanting to go down to Daly City, I gave Kababayan a shot. The options are rather limited and didn't seem very fresh when I went at 5pm on a weekday. I wanted the kare kare but unfortunately they didn't have it that day. I opted for another pork dish that was coconut+shrimp paste based and it tasted ok - would not order again. I also got the karioka - which I LOVED at Fil-Am - but here, it tasted a day old and was too hard. There were a lot of blue collar solo diners, so everyone kind of just eats in peace. Not somewhere you bring your friends. The lady was super nice and patiently explained what every dish was and helped me pick one I would like. Prices are average for the area but overpriced for the quality. So if you have time, I'd definitely recommend venturing to Daly City for your Filipino fix.

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    11 years ago

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    15 years ago

    I got a BBQ chicken on a stick and rice. It was delicious and it cost around four dollars. The food is great and it's cheap.

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    14 years ago

    the cashier always remembers what i get and shes vry nice. i love their buto

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    Page 3 of 3

    Kababayan Reviews in Other Languages

    Ask the Community - Kababayan

    Are they open for business anymore?

    yes they are but open mainly during the day

    Does anyone know if this place closed? Walked past it yesterday and today and it wasn't open :(

    They were closed over the weekend also, but the last time I was there was probably a week and a half ago and there was no sign that they were closing down. I’m hoping they are just on vacation🙏🏽🙏🏽.

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    The Bird

    The Bird

    4.2
    (2.6k reviews)
    2.5 mi
    $$

    A nice little spot to go to after hitting up the MOMA. We took the kids to see some art and my…read morehusband had been talking about this place. My eldest is a big chicken sandwich fan so we just had to make it happen. Needless to say he was happy. We came during their happy hour and got the donuts holes too! 10/10. My daughter even finished her food and she's a picky eater! The ordering process is a touch screen. There's 2 screens in case you don't know what you want and there's a line. (I tend to feel pressure if there's 1 kiosk.) The employees are incredibly kind. My son had a bunch of questions and they were glad to answer them.

    I came here for lunch after stopping by MOMA…read more Got the spicy chicken sandwich, non spicy chicken sandwich, loaded tots and curly fries. The chicken sandwich overall was fine, but the fried chicken itself was too stringy based on the meat they used. It was hard to easy take a bite of the chicken. The spicy chicken sandwich was spicy and had a kick compared to other chicken sandwiches I've had before. The sandwich also had pickles and coleslaw in it. For the loaded tots, they reminded me of a loaded baked potato but with tots. It came with cheese, sour cream, chives and bacon. For the curly fries, they were good, had nice seasoning on it. Overall, food came out pretty quickly, food is priced reasonably as well. I'd come back for the loaded tots and curly fries, if the chicken wasn't too stringy would be back for the sandwich as well.

    Photos
    Dining area
    Dining area
    Spicy chicken sandwich
    Spicy chicken sandwich
    FRIED CHICKEN SANDWICH (12/2023)

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    FRIED CHICKEN SANDWICH (12/2023)
    Mel's Drive-In

    Mel's Drive-In

    3.4
    (2.9k reviews)
    2.2 mi
    $$

    Mel's Drive-In is a fun, nostalgic spot that's definitely worth visiting--especially if you enjoy…read morethat classic retro diner vibe. The atmosphere really stands out, with a cool 50s theme that makes the whole experience feel unique and memorable. The burger was the highlight of the meal--juicy, flavorful, and cooked just right. It's exactly what you'd hope for from a place like this. The fries were decent, but nothing special--good enough, just not as standout as the burger. The cheese sticks were tasty and cooked well, but at around $18, they felt a bit overpriced for what you get. The restaurant was clean, and the staff were friendly and kept things moving smoothly. Overall, it's a great place to visit for the experience, solid food, and fun atmosphere. Not perfect across the board, but definitely a spot I'd recommend checking out at least once if you're in San Francisco.

    I remember this place being significantly better. We came after a late night Giants game because…read morenothing is better than good ole fashioned diner food. Greasy, salty and fatty. Here's what we got: 1. Banana milkshake 10/10 2. Coke float 10/10 3. Beef dip 2/10 4. Smash burger 6/10 Service was still great! There was only one server and the place started to get pretty packed so that's the good news. Also, forgot how nostalgic it is at a diner and one that still has a juke box. Come for the vibes and milkshakes.

    Photos
    Inside the diner
    Inside the diner
    Chilli cheese dog
    Chilli cheese dog
    Brunch in SF

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    Brunch in SF
    Fresca Garden

    Fresca Garden

    3.7
    (150 reviews)
    2.3 mi
    $$

    We ordered a 1/2 pepperoni pizza and waited over 30 minutes without getting anything. We eventually…read moreasked for a refund and left. The wait itself was frustrating, but the real issue was the woman taking orders. She genuinely didn't care. I understand burnout - I worked in the food industry, so I get how exhausting customer facing jobs can be. But it was NOT busy. She was not overwhelmed with customers or orders. She was just standing there on her phone, completely disengaged. At one point she put her headphones in and was talking on them while people in the kitchen were making orders. There were at least 4 orders sitting on the counter behind her, and she never checked once. There were only 2 of us and one other customer standing there waiting, clearly confused, for over 30 minutes. She even started getting ready to leave as if it was totally normal that people were still standing there waiting for food. No communication. No checking. No sense of responsibility. You could tell the kitchen staff was annoyed too because she was doing absolutely nothing. When we finally asked for a refund, she offered a whole pizza instead. For what? To wait another 30+ minutes? With conference traffic from Moscone Center and movie nights this place could be making money, but somehow it takes over 30 min for a mini pizza with 0 customer awareness. Never again.

    I stopped here for lunch and ordered their 1/2 pepperoni pizza with fries and a drink. The pizza…read morewas good but I was expecting the crust to be crispy as it was cooked in a flame oven. The fries were delicious and the drink refreshing. This is located basically in the food court of the AMC theater.

    Photos
    After SFMOMA,i pass this place by accident
    After SFMOMA,i pass this place by accident
    Veggie Lovers (Customized)
    Veggie Lovers (Customized)
    Fresca Garden

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    Kababayan - filipino - Updated June 2026

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